Paper feeding device



Sept. 3, 1940.

w. P. scHARR PAPER FEEDING DEVICE Filed July 4, 1 959 Patented Sept. 3,1940 UNITED `S'IATIEZS -m'rlau'r OFFICE PAPER' 'FEEnmG DEVICE y YorkApplication July 4, 1939, Serial No. 282,791 In Germany July 11,- 19381o claims. l (c1. iov-129) This invention relates generally to paperfeeding devices and, more specifically, to split platens for accountingmachines wherein separate recfor receiving lines of item and totalimpressions, and be line spaced between items and fed with" l a longfeed 'after total recordings so that the rstline of a succeeding form isbrought into print receiving position; The other section of the platenIcarries a continuous strip or collection list whereon the items -andtotals are recorded without long open spaces between the successiverecordings related to different bills.

Heretofore separate uncoordinated feeding devices have been applied todivide platen sections, but in the present case, the platen parts -arecoo ordinated because asingle driving means` is used to operate bothportions of the split platen.

When printing items on forms such as bills, there are times when it isdesired to print an additional record of, the list of items vand totalsappearing on a plurality of bills. Such a list is usually called acollection list. Of course, the

size of the bill forms is constant, but the number7 of itemsA recordedthereon varies, so that there is often a large space under the last itemor total on a bill. If the collection list or strip were to be fed thesame as the bill sheet there` would be long unused sections thereoncorresponding to the unused' parts of the bills. Therefore, the

devices of the present invention are provided to disconnect the feedingconnections of the strip during the time that a long feeding operationis imparted to the bill sheet, and, in this way, the printed data on thestrip is spaced with the lines of. recording followingdirectly undereach n other. There is a slight increase in the distance between thelines of recording after each total vline of recording.B This is done todistinguish separategroups of items and associate the items and totalsrelating to a particular bill.

5 .An obiect'of'the invention is to provide a divided platen which isadapted for use in the ordinary way as a long unitary platen with asurface that is substantially contiguous. Therefore, the divided platenmay support a single 50A sheet to receive impressions across the fullwidth, but it is also suited for holding separate sheets which are to bemoved differentially. j

AAnother object of the invention L.is to provide a split, platen withdrivingc controls that are co- 55 ordinated with agrecord controlledmachine S0 that the platen sections are automatically controlled to befed in line spacing after item print-- ing operations and shifted with along feed after total printing operations.

A further object of the invention is the pro- 5 vision of separate butcoordinated paper feeding rollers with adjustable controls cooperatingwith one roller so that different sized forms or bills7 of differentlengths may be fed thereon, and other adjustable controls cooperatingwith the 10 other roller so that a variable predetermined extent of feedmay be imparted to the strip on said second rollr following a receptionof a total,

impression.

A still further object of the invention is the'lii provision of adivided platen whereinl one section or part is fed through connectionsto the other part, with means for Acle-clutching the driven part fromthe driver. A magnetic clutch serves. to connect the driving part to amain operating zo means, and another magnetic clutch may be operated todisconnect the second part from the part connected to the main operatingmeans.

It is also an object of the invention to provide adjustable cams foroperating contacts inI series 25 withvthe magnetic clutches controllingthe feeding connections to the sections to the platen. Certain of thesecams are coordinated and synchronized with the line spacing and longfeeding movement of one section of the platen to determine the length ofbill forms. 'I'he other contact operating cams are driven on totaltaking operations to control de-clutching of the listing section of theplaten while the other section is oper- `ative to eject a bill; The camsassociated with 35 the listing section of the platen may be lalziiustedto select a, vpredetermined spacing of the list 1 afer a total has beenrecorded thereon.

suchv as that disclosed in the Lake Patent No. 1,976,617, issued October9, 1934.

The two platen portions or sections 2 0 and 2| are supported on theplaten shaft 22 that extends 55 embodiedfi-n 5g j and controlled by arecord controlled machine Aso 4oss

through carriage side frames 23 and 24; On the right end, the shaft issupported on a ball bearing 25 attached to the right side frame 24. Theleft end of shaft 22 is supported by another ball bearing 26, the outerrace of which is secured to the left end of platen portion 20.

The right section 2| of the split platen is supported on shaft 22 bymeans of a pair of circular end members 21 and 28 the latter of which iscentered on the shaft but connedbetween bearing 25 and a shoulder onshaft 22. Section 2| is secured to shaft 22 by means of a pin 29extending through the hub of end member 21. Therefore it is apparentthat the right section 2|, which is the section that carries the billform material, is permanently connected with the platen shaftandpartakes of all movements imparted to the shaft.

The other section 20 is the portion of the platen adapted to carry thecollection list strip and forL this reason is arranged to be readilydisengaged from the platen shaft 22, but normally connected therewith tomove in synchronism with the line spacingmovement of section 2|. Theright end of section 20 is rotatably mounted on shaft 22 by means of aball bearing which is confined between the end of member 21 and ashoulder on an annular ring 3| attached to the end of section 29.

As shown, the portions 20 and 2| are illustrated as being separated by aspace 32 appearing at the center of the platen. 'I'his space 32 isexaggerated for purposes of illustration, for the surfaces of the twoparts of the platen may be made substantially contiguous so that a typeimpression may be effected at the intersection of the parts of theplaten when a single wide sheet is used. Y

The left end of section 20 is provided with a cylinder 33 surroundingthe left end of shaft 22 but separated therefrom. This cylinder isattached to the end of section 20 and extends through a ball bearing 34which is fastened in-4 side a housing 35 attached to the left sideframe23 of the'carriage. Fastened to the left end of cylinder 33 by means offeather pins 36, is a circular member 31 carrying the outer race of ballbearing 26, mentioned hereinbefore as being the left bearing of shaft22. From the foregoing description it is apparent that platen section2|) is free to rotate with respect to shaft 22 'because bearings 26, 30,and 34 are allowed to turn freely and at the same time serve as supports for the left end of the shaft.

Connections are provided to gear the left section 20 to the left end ofthe platen so that it is normally clutched and conected` therewith. Atthe left end of shaft 22, a crown gear 38 is pinned on the shaft. Theteeth on this gear cooperate with the teeth of a similar gear 39fastened to the armature ring 40 on a hand wheel 4| loosely mounted on astub shaft 42.v Extending inwardly from the armature plate 40 is a pin43 engaged in a slotted fiange 44 extending from the member 31 attachedto the cylinder 33. Therefore it is apparent that a driving connectionexists between the platen shaft and the section 2li through gear 38,gear 39, armature plate 40, pin 43, flange 44, member 31, and cylinder33 attached to section 20. This connection remains in effect as .long asthe teeth of the gears 38 and 39 remain` in mesh, as they areurged to doby a compression spring 45 tending to move gear 39 towards the' right. Amagnet 46 is provided to counteract the pressure of spring 45 and drawthe armature and connected gear 39,to wards the left to disengage thedriving connection. This magnet is mounted in a cup-shaped holder 41which is fastened to a bracket 48 attached to the left side frame 23 andthus made 5 stationary with respect to the platen. When magnet 46 isenergized it attracts armature 40 and slides the connected gear 39towards the left, carrying the shaft 42 along therewith because it isattached to gear 39 by means of pin 49. 'I'he outer surface of .armature40 is provided with an annular ring of friction material 50 that isdesigned to engage the outer lip of cup 41 so that motion of gear 39 andhand wheel 4| may be stopped abruptly when the magnet draws them out ofdriving engagement.

In addition to the automatic means for disconnecting the platen drive bymeans of magnet 46, there is also provided a manual device fordisconnecting gear 39 from gear 38 This control takes the form of aknurled knob 5| loosely mounted on the end of stub shaft 42. The knob isformed with a ange having a V-shaped extension 52 which normally fitsinto a groove in a collar 59 keyed on stub shaft 42. A pin |00 holds thecollar with respect to rotation, but a slot inthe shaft around the pin,permits the shaft to move axially through the collar. The right end ofthis collar 53 abuts against the inner race of a ball bearing 54 mountedbetween the magnet holder 41 and the shaft 42. Therefore, when the knob5| is gripped and pulled outwardly to shift extension 52 away from theno tch in collar 53 and then supported on the outer surface of collar53, shaft 42 is drawn towards the left and the teeth of the connectedclutch gear 39 are disengaged from'the crown gear 38. l

Hand wheel 4| provides means whereby the platen sections may be rotatedby hand. When the clutch connection is established between gears 38 and39, as shown, theoperation of hand wheel 4| serves to turn both sections20 and 2| of the platen. However, should the gear connectionsbe ldisconnected either through operation of the Y manipulative knob 5|, orthrough energization of magnet 46, then the hand wheel 4| is notconnected to platen portion 2|, but remains connected to the othersection 20 through pin 43 which remains in cooperation with flange 44,i, regardless of the position of the armature 48. By this means thecollection strip on section 20 may be adjusted or reinserted withoutdisturbing the bill'sheet around portion 2|.

Both platen sections are driven from a common operator by means ofconnections established with a main operating means. When the mainswitch S is closed a motor 55 is driven by a circuit through line330,-wire 56, motor 55, wire 51, feed switch Sl and line 33|. The motordrives ,i a belt 58 on a pulley 59 connected to a shaft 89 on whichthere is fastened a gear 6|. Gear 6| meshes with a constantly turningclutch gear 62 freely mounted on the end of platen shaft 22. Adjacent toclutch gear 62 is a cup magnet clutch housing 63 keyed to shaft 22 bymeans of a. pin and slot connection 64. The housing 63 is normallypushed away from the clutch drive gear 62 by means of acompressionspring 65 mounted in oppositely facing annular grooves ini'he parts 62 and 63. This spring serves to hold the housing 63 towardsthe left abutting against the stop pin 66 in shaft 22. However, thehousing carries' a magnet 61 which, when energized, attracts the clutchgear 62 and serves to move the housing u 63 relative thereto so that thefriction surfaces on both inner sides engage and form a drivingconnection.

-It is obvious that the extent of movement iml' parted toA the platenshaft 22 depends upon the time of energization of magnet 61, so that forshort, line spacing movements a momentary energization of the magnet issuicient to cause it to shift ahead one tooth space on the usual ratchetand pawl locating means; while for long feeding operations, a sustainingenergization of magnet 61.is required.

The automatic split section controls of the disjclosure may be suspendedby opening switch SI,

chanical clutch connections are established with the pair of platensections in such a manner that the bill sheet is fed from form to formwhile the accompanying strip is line kspaced, In series with the clutchmagnet 61 is `a pair of contacts 68 which are closed momentarily ,duringeach printing operation by a lever. 265 that is vibrated in thetabulator before each printing operationis effected. The line spacingcircuit through magnet 61 includes une aslfswitch sl, wire 51, wire 69,magnet 61, wire 10, 'normally closed contacts 1|, magnet 12, contacts68, wire 56, and line 338. This is a circuit that is closed momentarilyso that magnet 61 attracts gear 62 and effects a connection between themain operating means and the platen shaft 22 which at this time isconnected to both platen sections 20 and 2 I. -rI'he clutch con-lnection is maintained just long enough to carrythe driven sections sothat the ratchet wheel 212 thereon makes one step of movement before theusual detent comes into play to hold it from further movement. r

The described line spacing circuit is maintained through contact 1| fora predetermined number of line spacing operations according to the de-fsired length of bill form. The length of-the bill form is predeterminedby the arrangement of a' pair ofadjustable cams 13 and 14 whichcooperate with the contacts 1| to regulate the time at which they are toopen to stop line spacing and long feeding operation. These cams 13 and14 are adjustable with relation to each other so that the elevatedperiphery thereon may be extended or contracted by setting the camsrelative to each other and then locking them together bymeans of a pin15 passing through an aligned pair of the many perforations 16 appearingin the'cams- The insulation block on the lower blade of contacts 1| -iswide enough -to cooperate .with the elevated part of the' periphery ofboth cams so that it rides along the outer edge of one com and passesover/both cams and along the outer edge of the other cam before droppinginto the depression- ,l constantly rotating shaft I8' similar to theshaft Kbetween bothl cams.

The contact operating cams 13 and 14 are moved in synchronism with themovement of the platen by means of clutch connections that areestablished lby magnet 12 which is energized whenever magnet 61 isenergized to cause platen movement. The cams are attached to a. sh'aft11 bearing one part of a normally open clutch 18 the-'other part ofwhich is slidably mounted on a 60. Whenever magnet 12 is energized itrocks a. lever 18 articulated with the movable part of clutch 18 whichthen connects cams 13 and 14 to the driving means so that they aresynchronized with the movement of the platen.

The combined effect of cams 13 and 14 is to sustain the electricalconnnections through contact 1I so that magnet 61 is energized for sucha length of time that vthe platen section 2| is connected to the drivingmeans to move to such a degree that the remainder of each bill form isfed after each total printing operation regardless of the number ofpreviously recorded items thereon. f

Attention may be drawn to the fact that the platen section 20 carryingthe continuous strip remains connected to the driven section of theplaten through gears 38 and 39 during all line spacing operations.However, after a total printing impression is effected on the records,other automatic controls come into play to energize magnet 46 todisconnect platen section 26 from the bill carrying section 2| duringmostA of the long feeding operation which is used to eject the billform. 'Ihese controls include a pair of contacts 80 in series withmagnet 46 and a pair of adjustable cams 8| and 82 which cooperate with`the contacts 80 to close them during loig feeding operation. These cams8| and 82 are sim#l ilar to the other cams 13, 14 in that they areconnected together by a pin 83 after being set with relation to eachother by a pair of perforav tions 84 therein aligned by the pin. Thecams 8| and 82 are attached to thetabulatpr shafty |54 which is turnedafter each total printing' operad tion. Also attached to the shaft |54is another contact operating cam 85 cooperating with contacts 86arranged in series with the clutch magnets 61 and 12. 'I'he effect ofcam 85 is to close contacts 86 during the latter part of a total op- ,A

eration and thus provide a sustaining circuit for clutch magnet 61 whichholds the drive connection to platen section 2| long enough to eject thebill upon which the total has been printed.

The length of time that this circuit through'.

magnet A61, contact 1|, magnet 12 and contacts 86, is held is governedby the adjusted raised periphery of cams 13 and 14 cooperating withcontacts 1I. At the same time that the contacts 86 are closed toinitiate the long feeding opera-l4 i tion, contacts 88 are closed toenergize magnet `46 so that platen-section 20 is disconnected from theplaten shaft and thus is withheld from partaking of the long feedmovement imparted to the other platen section 2|. However, contacts 88are not held closed through the entire length of the long feedingoperation because it is desired thata certain amount of space beprovided on the continuous strip after each total impression.

This amount of space on a strip may be pr'edeter-v '1,

mined and selected by shortening the effective range -of cams 8| and 82so that contacts 88 are opened before contacts 1| open, therefore -relay46 will be deenergized near the end of` the long feed operation andgears 38 and 39 are again engaged while magnet 61 is still effectivelyconnecting the platen shaft to the main driving means.

When the contacts 1| `open during the long feeding operatibn, magnet 61is deenergized to preventfurther movement of the platen, vbut movementof camsA 13 and 14 is maintained by other electrical connections throughcontacts 88 which maintain Athe energization of magnet 12 and thereforekeep clutch 18 closed to drive the -cams through the remainder of theircycle. The

circuit through magnet 12 at this time includes wire 90. contacts 89,magnet 12, contacts I8 and wire 56 to line 330. Thus magnet 12 ismaintained effective until the cams 13 and 1l are brought around to thenormal position, in which they are shown, at which time the contacts 89open simultaneously with the opening of oontacts 8,6 which deener'gizesrelay 12 so that the clutch 18 returns to the normal disengagedcondition. Then the parts areready for a new cycle of operation with thebill form on platen section 2| in position to receive the first itemimpression and the strip on platen section 20 spaced a predeterminedamount below the last total impression and also in readiness to receivethe first item imprint.

While there has been shown and described and pointed out the fundamentalnovel features of the invention as applied to.a single modification, itwill be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changesin the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operationmay be made by those skilled in the art without departing from thespirit of the invention. It is the intention, therefore, to be limitedonly as indicated by the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a record feeding device, a platen shaft, a split platen thereoncomprising a first section secured to the shaft and a second sectionrotatably mounted thereon, a main operating means, a device forconnecting said shaft to said main operating means, clutch gearingbetween said shaft andthe second section, an armature iixedly connectedto o ne of the members of said clutch gearing and slidably connected tothe second section, a cup magnet cooperating with said armature fordisengaging said gearing and friction means cooperating with said cup,magnet and armature for stopping said second section frommovement due toinertia, a'nd means for energizing said magnet at predeterminedintervals to prevent record feeding movement of said second section bysaidL shaft.

2'. In a record feeding device, a platen shaft, a split platen thereoncomprising a rst section secured to the shaft and a second sectionrotatably mounted thereon, a main operating means, a device forconnecting said shaft to said main operating means, clutch gearingbetween said shaft and the second section, an armature connected to saidgearing,a connection between said armature and said second section whichis maintained in all positions of the armature, manual means forshifting the armature to disengage said clutch Y gearing, magnetic meansfor shifting said armature to disengage said clutch gearing, means forenergizing said magnetic means to shift the armature and disengage saidsecond section from the platen shaft, and means attached to saidarmature for rotating said second section through said connection.

3. In a device for feeding a pair of records, a main operating means, aplaten comprising two sections, means for connecting a first sectionwith the operating means, a rst magnet for controlling said connectingmeans, means normally clutching a second section to the first section, a

second magnet for controlling said. clutching means, means formomentarily energizing said first magnet to line space said sections,other means for producing a sustained energization of said first magnetto long feed the first section,

- and devices for energizing sai'd second magnet to with the firstmentioned roller, means for controlling the operation of the firstmentioned connecting means for line spacing the rollers, other means forcontrolling the operation of the rst mentioned connecting means for longfeeding the first roller, and means for disconnecting said secondconnecting means to stop said secondV mentioned roller during movementof the first roller for long feeding.

5. In a record feeding device, a platen shaft, a divided platen thereoncomprising a first section secured to the shaft and a second sectionrotatably mounted thereon, a main operating means for turning saidshaft, a crown gear secured to said shaft, and a second crown gearnormally meshing with said first mentioned crown gear, a spring forurging said second gear into mesh with the first gear, a circulararmature secured to said second gear, a driving pin extending from saidarmature and maintaining a driving connection with said second section,a manually operable means for shifting said second gear out of mesh todisengage said second section from the platen shaft, a magnet forattracting said armature to move the connected second gear out of mesh,means for energizing said magnet for a predetermined part of a cycle todisengage said second. section from the platen shaft, and a hand wheelattached to said armature for turning said second section when saidgears are out of mesh and turning both sections when the gears aremeshed.

6. In a machine for feeding a sheet of bill forms and an associatedcollection strip and printing items and totals thereon, a split platenwith a first section carrying said form sheet and a second sectioncarrying said strip, a main operating means, means for connecting saidfirst section with the operating means, means for connecting said secondsection with the first section,

long feeding said first section, means for determining the extent of thelong feed, and means for controlling the operation of said secondmentioned connecting means to disconnect the second section from thefirst section and stop the'strip t,

feed during long feeding.

7. In a machine for feeding a sheet of bill forms and an associatedcollection strip and printing items and totals thereon, a split platenwith a first section carrying said form sheet and a second sectioncarrying said strip, a main operating means, means for connecting saidrst section with the operating means, means for con-- necting saidsecond section with the rst section, means for controlling the operationof said first mentioned connecting means for line spacing said records,other .means for controlling the operation of said first mentionedconnecting means for long feeding said f irst section to feed said sheetfrom formv to form, adjustable means for predetermining the length ofthe bill forms and the1 extent of the long feeding operation, and other:adjustable means for controlling the operation of said second vmentionedconnecting means-to disconnect the second section from the rst sectionfor a predetermined part of the long feed so that the strip is fed ashorter distance than the space the bill sheet is fed between forms.

8. In a machine for feeding a sheet of bill forms and an associatedcollection strip and printing items and totals thereon, a split platenwith a first section carrying said form sheet and a second sectioncarrying said strip, a main operating means, a clutch for connectingsaid first section with said operating means, normally engaged gears forconnecting said second section to said rst section, a magnet foroperating said clutch, contacts in series With said magnet, means forclosing said contacts to effect line spacing of both records on eachprinting operation, a second set of contacts in parallel With said rstmentioned contacts, a cam for closing said second contacts after totalprinting to sustain energizat'ion of said clutch magnet for a longfeeding and bill ejecting operation, a third set of contacts in serieswith said magnet, a pair of adjustable cams cooperating with said thirdcontacts to hold them closed for a predetermined part of a cycletodetermine the length of each bill form, means for moving said cams insynchronism with the movement of said rst platen section, a secondmagnet for disengaging said gears, a fourth set of contacts in seriesWith said second'magnet, a second pair of adjustable cams connected tosaid cam and closing said fourth contacts to disengage the secondsection when long feeding is started, said second pair of cams beingadjusted to open the fourth contacts before the third contacts areopened and thereby deenergize the second magnet to engage the secondsection While the first magnet is still energized to move the secondstrip a short predetermined amount as the bill is ejected.

9. A machine as in claim 8 in which the synchronized cam moving meanscomprises a third magnet in series with the clutch magnet, and a clutchfor connecting the first adjustable cams With a constantly rotatingshaft, said third magnet engaging said clutch When-ever the first magnetconnects the rst section to the main operating means and a holdingcircuit for maintaining said third magnet energized and the first camsclutched after the said third contacts open to stop record feeding, anduntil said fourth contacts ope and said third contacts are again closedini normal condition.

10. In a record feeding device with a line spacing control effective tofeed full Width sheets, a platen shaft, a split platen thereon forfeeding pairs of record sheets comprising a rst section secured to theshaft and a second section rotatably mounted thereon, a main operatingmeans, a first clutch between said shaft and the main operating means, asecond clutch between said shaft and the second section, a feeding meanson said first section adapting it for direct operation independent ofsaid main operating means, auxiliary feed control means comprising amagnet for operating said rst clutch to connect theA shaft and the mainoperating means and another magnet for operating

